In 1962,
the Army tested a machine known as The Overland Train at Yuma Proving
Ground in Arizona. It was designed to carry equipment and supplies over
both on- and off-road terrains. The train consisted of the control car,
ten cargo carrs, and two power generating cars. It was 565 feet long and
could haul 150 tons of cargo. The control car also contained living quarters
for a crew of six, complete with sleeping, eating and sanitation facilities.
For a memoir of how the train was designed and built, click
here.

The control
cab is all that remains of The Overland Train today, and it may be
viewed at the Yuma
Proving Ground Heritage Center. The rest of the Overland Train was
sold to a Yuma scrap dealer.

Bonnie Duncan's memoir about the design and
construction of the Overland Train:

"In the late
1950's R.G. LeTourneau's brother-in-law gave him the idea of a vehicle
which could be both moved and steered by having each wheel powered by
its own electric motor. LeTourneau advertised for an engineer, and my
late husband, Sam Duncan, was hired to implement the idea.

"When Sam went
to Longview, Texas (headquarters for the LeTourneau Company), the train
was in the design phase, and the U.S. government was interested in the
concept. It was designed to travel on terrain which could not be traversed
otherwise -- snow, ice, and even crevasses. It was for defense of Alaska,
but by the time it was completed, the Cold War was over, and there was
no need for the train.

"The train had
a power car which provided power to the whole thing,
including rather elegant living quarters, very modern cooking facilities,
and even an automatic laundry. The men who worked on it called it a
mobile city.

"One feature
of the train was its near perfect tracking. Where it was driven on sand,
the tracks looked like they could have been made by only two wheels,
even around a curve.

"It was a wonderful
piece of machinery -- totally unique as far as I know."